


Lunch

by poetroe



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Coming Out, F/F, First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, High School, House Party, Pining, Underage Drinking, yuetara, yuetaraweek
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-26
Updated: 2020-10-26
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:06:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,969
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27207844
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/poetroe/pseuds/poetroe
Summary: Yue looks as exceptional as ever, even when she’s wearing the same grey gym shirt as the rest of her class. The group passes by the bleachers and Katara keeps following her with her eyes, observing every detail about the girl, from her braids to the purple bracelet around her wrist and the brand of her sneakers.Then Yue looks to the side, as if she could feel Katara’s gaze on her, spotting her easily. She smiles, gives her a small wave, and keeps on running as Katara dies just a little bit at the interaction.
Relationships: Katara/Yue (Avatar)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 48





	Lunch

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ilovekatara](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ilovekatara/gifts).



> i had so much fun writing this and i wanna thank aino for requesting it !! ur love for yuetara honestly worked so inspiring for me and im glad to be contributing to yuetara week in this way :)

The first time Katara sees her, it’s lunchtime on a Friday. She remembers, because she’d been thinking about it on and off during the following weekend. The girl captures her attention instantly when she enters the cafeteria, her hair white as snow and her deep blue eyes searching. She must be new, Katara remembers thinking. This is not a girl who you’d forget goes to the same school as you do.

From a purely aesthetical point of view, Katara keeps her eyes on her; gaze moving from the eyes to the braids to the narrow waist, and the purple blouse tucked into the high waisted distressed jeans resting on her hips. She’s transfixed to the point that her brain catches up only when the girl is standing right by the table she and her brother are sitting at.

“Hey, it’s Sokka, right?” the girl asks. Her voice is soft but clear like a bell. Sokka quickly stands up when he notices her, before pulling up another chair.

“Hey!” he says, eagerly. “Yeah, that’s me! I’m glad you found us—this is my little sister, Katara.” A pair of icy blue eyes fall on her and Katara waves, awkwardly. Although cold in appearance, the girl’s eyes regard her with a warmth and curiosity Katara wouldn’t have necessarily expected from a stranger.

“Hi,” she says, softly.

“She’s a year below us,” Sokka continues. “Katara, this is Yue. She just transferred here from the Northern Water Tribe.”

“You have a beautiful name,” Katara tells her. A pretty name to fit a pretty girl.

“You, too,” Yue replies, smiling back.

That is their first meeting. Sokka gushed afterwards about how she was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen and Katara hadn’t been able to find it in herself to disagree, or make a comment about how Yue was a person with feelings instead of an inanimate object to be admired because, well… She agreed. Yue is objectively very beautiful.

And that’s where Katara’s problems began.

***

During the following weeks, Yue and her brother become closer. It’s strange to see him with anyone outside his usual group of boneheaded friends, Katara thinks as she enters the cafeteria, making her way to their usual table. They’re a nice fit, though, the way they’re sitting opposite one another: both handsome, both smart and funny, even if Yue’s sense of humor is more cynical than Sokka’s. It’s probably only a matter of time before they officially start dating, Katara thinks offhandedly as she takes a seat next to Yue.

“Hey,” she greets the both of them. “What’s up?”

“Not much,” Sokka tells her around a mouthful of chicken. “We’re thrashing teachers.” Katara grins.

“Did you fall asleep in Mrs. Wu’s class again?” Yue chuckles at the question.

Sokka shrugs. “It’s not my fault she teaches the most boring course in existence. Like, _spirituality_ —” He wiggles with his fingers. “—it’s all bull, anyways.”

“Makes sense you couldn’t get refined matters such as belief, ethics and meaning through your thick skull,” Katara says.

Sokka opens his mouth, brow furrowed, a comeback undoubtedly waiting on his tongue.

“I’ve always liked thinking about the possibility of something being out there,” Yue says, beating him to it gracefully. Her chin is resting on her joined hands and her cold eyes are far-off. “Spirits, deities, manifestations in one form or another.” She turns her head to Katara. “You can never truly be sure until you experience it, right?” One hand leaves her chin to bring up her drink, lips expertly capturing the straw.

“Exactly,” Katara answers, a little breathless.

***

With a thud, Katara drops her backpack on the kitchen table, shortly after plopping down on one of the chairs herself.

“Hey. Long day?” Sokka asks as he enters the room and starts rummaging through the cupboards.

“Yeah. Pakku had us toiling away at calculus all throughout last period. My brain feels like a wrung out towel.” Sokka finds what he was looking for and spins around quickly. “Can you pass me a—” He’s one step ahead of her, opening the fridge and throwing her a cool bottle of moon peach juice. Katara smiles. “Thanks.”

“Sure,” he grins, resuming his march through the kitchen and up the stairs in a rumbling staccato. Katara exhales, taking a swig from her juice as she pushes her bag aside and opens the newspaper, leaning on her hand as she scans the words.

This is her favorite alone time, when her dad is still at work and she has the house to herself—at least, so long as Sokka stays in his room. Just her and the paper on the kitchen table, discarded after the three of them left in a rush in the morning, waiting for Katara to continue where she left off. And she does, reveling in the quiet when it’s just the rustling of the paper and the sweetness of moon peaches on her lips.

“Anything interesting?”

The soft voice raptures Katara’s quiet bubble, making her jump and clench the page in her fist at the pure shock from hearing _that_ voice anywhere else than at school. She looks up at Yue, who is leaning against the doorpost and regarding her with an apologetic smile. “Sorry if I startled you.”

“That’s okay,” Katara replies. Her eyes flit back to the page. “Um, wage inequality in Ba Sing Se, desertification at the edges of the Si Wong Desert… No big international conflicts,” she covertly smiles at Yue as she closes the paper, “ _yet_. There’s always tomorrow.” Yue chuckles, a throaty sound that echoes in Katara’s mind after the fact.

“You have a great sense of humor, just like your brother,” Yue tells her. Her cool eyes seem to have gained a sparkle when they land on Katara again. “It’s very cute.”

Normally, Katara doesn’t like to be compared to her brother, but Yue’s words make her pause and she can feel something start simmering in her chest. She wants to say something back, a similar compliment maybe, but Sokka beats her to the punch as he barges into the room again.

“Oh, here you are,” he says, smiling widely at Yue. “Ready to go?”

Yue nods, before turning to Katara for a last time and offering her a small wave. “See you at lunch tomorrow,” she says.

Then they’re gone and Katara is alone again. She releases a deep sigh as the tension she’d been holding in her shoulders flows away. Defeated, Katara drops her head onto the newspaper.

***

“The tribes united over this period, eventually forming the nation as we know it. Today, the focus will be on the transition between the feudal system used by the warring tribes in the Fire Nation to the centralized government, after its unification.”

The unexpected buzzing of her phone against her leg makes Katara jump and she fumbles to see the notification without her phone being spotted by Mr. Bumi, the world history teacher. No one usually texts her during class, Katara thinks with a frown as she puts her phone on silent. The number is one she doesn’t recognize, but the message—a simple ‘hi’ with a cute smiley face and a blue heart—holds her curiosity. Just as Katara opens the messaging app, she receives another text.

Sokka gave you my number the other day, it reads. This is Yue, by the way.

It goes accompanied by another series of emojis, that look just silly enough to make Katara smirk down at the phone in her lap dopily. She catches herself before the teacher can notice and quickly straightens her expression, then types something back.

Hey, what’s up, she says, as well as: aren’t you also in class?

Yes, but I’d rather be talking to you. Katara stares at the message until her screen dims. Bumi hasn’t noticed her, too enraptured by his own story on the Fire Nation’s unification.

Me too, she sends back.

They text back and forth a little bit during that period, about the latest school rumors, making jokes, and talking about nothing at all. Katara knows they’ll see each other at lunch, but still she can’t find it in herself to put her phone away. It’s a particular kind of comforting—simply enjoying each other’s company, but apart.

***

Ever since spring rolled around and the days have been getting longer and warmer, Katara starts spending more breaks with her friends outside, hanging out on the bleachers in the dull sunlight. Today is even warm enough for her to shrug off her jean jacket, baring her arms and soaking up the light with a content sigh.

“I guess winter is officially over now,” Aang mentions, where he’s sitting next to her. “Piandao finally moved PE back outside.” Katara follows his line of vision and sure enough, there is the gym teacher, coming onto the running track in a steady pace, with a group of students running after him.

Katara’s eyes are automatically drawn to white hair, that shimmers in the watery sunlight. Yue looks as exceptional as ever, even when she’s wearing the same grey gym shirt as the rest of her class. The group passes by the bleachers and Katara keeps following her with her eyes, observing every detail about the girl, from her braids to the purple bracelet around her wrist and the brand of her sneakers.

Then Yue looks to the side, as if she could feel Katara’s gaze on her, spotting her easily. She smiles, gives her a small wave, and keeps on running as Katara dies just a little bit at the interaction.

“Who was that?” Aang asks. “Do you know her?” Katara nods as she lays down on her back, defeated. Above her, a cloud slides in front of the sun again.

“That’s Yue. She’s in Sokka’s class.”

“She’s really pretty,” Aang mentions offhandedly.

Katara sighs. “I know.”

***

There is something prickling Katara, and it isn’t spring allergies.

Sokka has been spending more time with Yue, whisking her away during lunchtime and hanging out with her at home. It ultimately meant Katara has been seeing less of her new friend, even though they’d been texting each other more and more.

Looks in passing, little smiles and waves, and only the occasional ‘hello’ is all Katara sees of Yue, lately and it’s frustrating.

“Oh, sweet,” Sokka mutters, sitting next to her on the couch, grinning at his phone. There is a home makeover show playing on the tv, but Katara isn’t really paying attention.

“What?” she asks. Maybe Yue sent him something funny. Sokka leans over to the side, handing her his phone.

“Look what Zuko just sent me,” he says, grinning widely. “His parents will be away for the weekend, so he’s throwing a house party together with Azula.” Bring your own booze, the text says. Doors open at 7, snacks are accounted for. “Their house is gigantic, too,” Sokka continues, when Katara hands the phone back. “Man, this is going to be awesome. I hope Yue can make it!”

Katara smiles, but it’s a little strained. “Yeah, that would be fun.” She turns her attention back to the tv, where a Gaoling townhouse is being completely stripped, according to the whims of the designer. The people who live there have been whisked away for the day, not knowing anything of how their home will look like at the end of this, but they’re very excited nonetheless. Katara finds she envies that, just a little bit.

She ends up getting caught up in the bright paint on the walls, the hardwood floor and the new furniture. When her phone buzzes, she has almost forgotten about the party.

Hey, Yue’s text reads. Sokka told me about the house party. You’re coming too, right?

Katara smiles, despite herself. Of course, she writes back. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.

***

The thumping of a loud bass drum vibrates through the windows as Sokka pulls up at the house. Having picked up Yue on the way there, they’re fashionably late and the party seems to already be in full swing.

Toph lets them in, clearly inebriated. “You guys are right on time for shots,” she grins, slightly slurring the words. “Come on!” She wildly swings her arm around until she finds Sokka’s hand, the pink drink in her cup sloshing over as she pulls him along into the house.

Katara stands behind Yue, coat still on, watching with a gaping mouth at the chaos ensuing in front of them. Most of the people here are decidedly _not_ sober—the exception being them and Aang, who Katara knows doesn’t drink and is instead tearing it up on the living room dance floor—and every available surface is stacked with cups and bottles. In the corner, Jet and the rest of his gang are hunched over a blunt, carefully rolling it up. There’s a crashing sound, probably a glass, and loud laughter momentarily overpowers the music as Zuko rushes by with a towel with a panicked expression.

“Okay, then,” Yue laughs. She takes off her coat and takes Katara’s, too, hanging them on the same hook. “Come on. I’ll make us some drinks.” She takes Katara’s hand and expertly leads them through the crowd, into the kitchen.

This isn’t Yue’s first time, obviously. Katara doesn’t really do this party thing a lot, but Yue seems to know her way around the liquor. She watches as the older girl mixes together a red drink with vodka and grape soda, so that it resembles Toph’s drink, but darker. “Here you go,” she says as she hands Katara the cup, with a smile.

“Thanks.” Katara smiles back, raising the cup. “Cheers.” Yue always looks great, but tonight she’s frankly stunning, wearing a navy dress dotted with embroidered stars and a single crescent moon on her right shoulder. The dark blue of the dress clashes against her white braids in the most fascinating way. Her eyes, the cool blue Katara has come to find a most comforting sight, regard her curiously. “Uh, you look really good tonight, by the way,” Katara manages after swallowing the drink. It’s sickly sweet, but she can’t taste the alcohol at all. “I didn’t get the chance to tell you, earlier.” Mostly because Sokka spent about half the drive talking about how amazing she looked.

Yue’s smile softens further. She reaches out and grabs a hold of Katara’s wrist, rubbing over it with her thumb. Katara can feel her breath catch in her throat. “Thank you,” Yue says, softly, leaning in as if to make sure no one else hears. “You clean up very nicely yourself.”

***

Sometime later that night Toph, the little troublemaker, convinces her to do some shots. The salt and lime help a little in disguising the tequila, but it still burns down her esophagus when Katara swallows and she cringes.

“Good job, Sweetness,” Toph tells her after she slams the shot glass onto the table. “We’ll make a party animal out of you, yet.” Katara starts chuckling.

They’re with their little group, off to the side, Katara, Aang and Toph. Sokka would normally hang out with them, as well, but Katara hasn’t seen him since Toph whisked him away at the very beginning. Katara doesn’t particularly miss him. She has her friends, she has the drink Yue made her—the drink that’s nearly gone, now. In one movement, she throws the remainder back and asks her friends: “want to go get a refill?”

Aang makes their drinks. Katara notices him being overly generous with the strong stuff, but she doesn’t say anything. It’s been some time since she really, _truly_ let loose, and tonight is shaping up to be the perfect opportunity to do so.

It’s about two-thirds through that particular drink that Katara starts feeling the alcohol. It burns comfortably in her chest and it makes her loose and woozy, if slightly sweaty. The perfect conditions for her to want to drag her friends to the center of the living room and start dancing.

Especially when the DJ, a girl from their school called June, plays Katara’s favorite song.

“Come on!” Katara exclaims, excitedly bouncing from her heels to her toes as she looks pleadingly at her friends. “Let’s dance!”

“Yeah!” Aang shouts back, an excited grin plastered on his face. “Let’s go!” He doesn’t waste a second and immediately starts getting down to the beat, moving onto the dancefloor as he does.

Katara turns to her other best friend. “Toph?”

The smaller girl shrugs. “Nah, you and Twinkletoes go ahead. I’m going to get another drink.”

“Alright,” Katara replies, laughing. She turns around, fully intent on surrendering herself to the thrum of alcohol in her veins and the bass reverberating in her chest. Aang is already there, in the middle of it all, just dancing and Katara wants nothing more than to join him.

But then her eyes find a familiar head of white hair and her heart stutters. Because Yue is there, dancing with Sokka, and they only have eyes for each other. They look like a perfect pair. Something inside Katara ruptures.

***

This must be Zuko’s room, Katara thinks, indifferently. She’s sitting on the soft bed, lingering in the room like the faint smell of boys deodorant. The walls are covered by posters of bands Katara only vaguely recognizes. It’s dark, but the light from the hall that shines through the cracked door is just enough to let her see them. Katara sniffles, wiping at her nose.

She tries to distinguish the numbers on the alarm clock on the nightstand, wondering how long she’s been hiding up here, but the tears that are still steadily trickling down her cheeks muddle her vision. It doesn’t matter, anyways. Not now that it has become that much clearer to Katara why seeing Yue in her brother’s arms caused her to react so frantically. Why Yue left her tongue-tied so embarrassingly often. Why the silly emojis Yue attaches to her texts had meant so much to her.

Why she spent every school day looking forward to lunch.

It’s a simple truth, really. Katara quietly wonders why it has taken her this long to figure out that she’s in love with Yue.

A soft knock on the door breaks her from her thoughts and she quickly wipes her tears away. “Hey,” Yue says, in a voice close to a whisper, as she sits down next to Katara. “I lost you for a second there.”

“Oh,” Katara says. “I’m sorry, I needed—” Her voice wavers, but she quickly swallows down the lump in her throat. “I needed to be alone.”

If Yue notices that she’s been crying, she doesn’t show it. Instead, she puts a warm hand over Katara’s knee. “Did something happen?”

Katara just looks at her. Even in the darkness, Yue’s eyes seem bright. Katara shakes her head.

“You can tell me, you know,” Yue continues, and squeezes her knee.

“No,” Katara starts. Then, at the hurt that briefly flashes through Yue’s eyes: “it’s silly, really.” Yue could never like her back. And having feelings for someone unattainable is clearly ridiculous.

“Whatever it is,” Yue replies. “I’m a good listener. Besides, whatever has got you feeling sad…” So she did notice, Katara thinks, and she averts her eyes. Yue isn’t deterred and uses her free hand to cup Katara’s cheek, wiping away remnants of mascara with her thumb. “I think it’s important to have someone to confide in.”

“And that someone is you?”

“It could be,” Yue says, smiling in a way that tells Katara she won’t hold it against her if she decided not to say anything. “I’d like it to be.”

Katara exhales. She knows no one quite like Yue. And if anyone deserved to hear her secret, it’s Yue. “It’s a little embarrassing,” she starts, quietly. Yue listens, watching her closely. “I, uh, I always really liked you, ever since Sokka introduced us. You’re the kindest person I know. One of the funniest, too.” There are tears behind her eyes that start pressing forwards, seeping out of the corners in spite of Katara trying to hold them in. “And I love being your friend,” she continues. “And I know you must like my brother the way he likes you, but when I saw you two dancing together, I just—” She must look like a blubbering mess right now, but she’s a little beyond the point of caring. There is no point in stopping. “I realized that _I_ like you like that. Like, as more than friends.”

“…Oh.”

The word floats in the loaded stasis of the moment, with neither girl knowing what to say. It’s Katara who eventually breaks the silence. “I understand if you don’t feel the same,” she says, pulling Yue’s hand from her leg. “You can leave me alone now.”

“That’s not it,” Yue reassures her. She doesn’t let Katara’s hand go, instead curling her fingers around it. “I like Sokka as a _friend_. And only as a friend. In fact—” She chuckles, catching Katara by surprise. “—I don’t like any boys like _that,_ as you put it.”

“So you are…”

“Into girls?” Yue smiles. “Absolutely.”

The utter relief that spreads through Katara’s chest does away with a weight on her shoulders she didn’t even realize was there. She has been so wrong about it all—she’s a little lost for words. “…Okay,” she breathes. “That’s cool. I had no idea.”

Yue huffs a laugh. “I could tell.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Katara bristles. Yue keeps chuckling.

“Just that that’s only half the story,” she says, petting Katara’s hand. “You see, Katara…” She leans in closer, speaking conspiratorially. “I also like you like _that_ , like as more than friends. I have for a little while.”

Katara doesn’t know what to say to that. For what feels like the hundredth time now, Yue renders her speechless. So instead of saying something back, she pulls Yue even closer by their joined hands and crashes their lips together into a kiss.

She melts at the surprised sound Yue lets out just before, and when she thoughtlessly brings up her free hand to cup her burning cheek, Katara realizes Yue has been blushing about as furiously as she had. Finally, they feel like equals; now that Katara knows her feelings are not unrequited, that Yue seems to like her back just as much, if this kiss is anything to go by. Yue presses into her, her hands finding the edge of Katara’s t-shirt, caressing the skin of her lower back.

Eventually, they fall over, all entangled in each other, and break apart laughing. They forget everything for a little while. They only know each other, here in the dark, in a room that isn’t theirs.

***

“So…” Katara fiddles with Yue’s fingers. “How did you know?”

They’re still sitting on Zuko’s bed, leaning against the cool wall with their shoulders touching. The muted pounding of the music is the only thing that undermines total silence.

“I suppose I’ve known for a while. Ever since my parents tried to set me up with Hahn.”

“They did _what_?”

“Our parents are friends.” Yue explains. “We were like twelve. They probably just liked the idea.” Katara shudders.

“I would’ve ran for the hills if my dad ever tried to set me up with one his friends’ sons,” she says.

“That’s the thing,” Yue chuckles. “So did I.”

“Well, I’m glad,” Katara grins, leaning forward to press a quick peck to her cheek. “I guess that brought you here, to me.” A few weeks back, during one lunch period when Yue was still just the transfer student from Sokka’s class, she had told them about how her father moved here for his job. Still, Yue agrees wholeheartedly, humming as she pulls her in for another kiss.


End file.
